Thanks to Health Canada for banning citronella.
And thanks to the CBC for letting us all know about it.
Here's a video (with me, Vimi (WWOOF volunteer), Aimee (Works Exhange Volunteer), Katy (Apprentice) and my Xana) plus an article below the video.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/health-canada-pulling-last-of-citronella...
That’s the problem with other essential oils as well. They may be effective as bug repellents, but no one has yet funded the studies to prove they’re safe.
DIY bug spray
Tracey TieF made and sold a natural bug spray with essential oils including lavender and rosemary for seven years before Health Canada shut her down recently.
The problem was that she hadn’t registered her product and done any safety studies.
“I can’t afford to run my own trial,” says the certified health practitioner. “I feel afraid and I feel sick about it, actually, because for me, this is a passion.”
TieF now puts that passion into teaching others how to make natural bug sprays. In a tiny room at Karma Co-op in Toronto, she passes out bottles, essential oils and recipes. “I’ll teach people until [Health Canada] stops me,” she vows.
Aimee Alabaster says she joined the class because she wants a natural bug spray for her children. “Everything out there for the most part contains DEET, and I don’t want to put DEET on my kids.”
Research has suggested DEET could be harmful to the central nervous system. But Health Canada states on its website that “registered insect repellents containing DEET can be used safely when applied as directed.”
Come 2015, citronella bug sprays won’t be entirely out of reach, you will just have to cross the border. The product will still be available in the U.S.